Headlines

Luis Suarez edged Barcelona past Real Madrid 2-1 in an enthralling Clasico at Camp Nou to go four points clear in the Liga title race on Sunday, while Sevilla kept their top-four hopes alive with a 2-0 win at Villarreal... Read more

Real Sociedad's long wait for a first La Liga away win of the season came to an end with a 1-0 victory at Getafe on Monday.
After 12 winless league games on the road, Sociedad ended that run thanks to Inigo Martinez's goal in the 66th minute... Read more

Barcelona will be hoping Lionel Messi does not suffer a hangover from his UEFA Champions League penalty miss at Manchester City as they look to bounce back from a Liga defeat to Malaga this weekend... Read more

Unai Emery needs to find a way to reenergise his Sevilla outfit in La Liga, while Atletico Madrid are on a high.
Sevilla host struggling Cordoba on Saturday, but they go into the clash having lost three of their past four league matches... Read more

About

Real Sociedad was founded in September 1909 as Sociedad de Futbol. The following year, King Alfonso XIII granted the club royal patronage, with the name changing to Real Sociedad de Futbol. Today, the club is more popularly known by the simplified 'Real Sociedad'.

For a long time, Real Sociedad insisted on only signing Basque players, similar to the policy currently operated by Athletic Bilbao. This policy was ended in 1989, when Ireland international John Aldridge joined the club. A year later, English striker Dalian Atkinson also signed for Sociedad.

The 1980s was by far the most successful decade in Real Sociedad's history. After finishing as league runners up in the 1979-80 season, the club won the Primera División for the first time in 1980-81, finishing ahead of Real Madrid on goal difference. The following season saw Real Sociedad successfully defend their La Liga crown, this time finishing two points ahead of second-placed Barcelona. In 1982-83, Sociedad reached the semi-finals of the European Cup and in 1986–87, the club won the Copa del Rey, beating Atlético Madrid via a penalty shootout. In recent seasons, the club's best performance came in 2002-03, with Real Sociedad finishing as runners up to Real Madrid, gaining the club Champions League qualification for the first time.

Legendary Real Sociedad players include the league winning trio of Jesús María Satrústegui, Jesús María Zamora and Pedro Uralde; the afforementioned John Aldridge; Xabi Alonso, who won the Don Balon award for his performances in the 2002-03 season and Turkish striker Nihat, who scored 59 goals for the club in his five seasons there.

The club plays its home matches at the Anoeta Stadium, which opened in 1993. The stadium has a capacity of 32,076 and also occasionally hosts rugby union matches for the French sides Biarritz Olympique and Aviron Bayonnais.